MUBI strikes once again.
I enjoyed Bacurau so much that I thought I’d give MUBI another chance to impress me with an international movie. And boy, did they succeed.
Mustang is a Turkish film created by Denize Gamze Ergüven, and other than a little known movie named Kings, starring Halle Berry and Daniel Craig, she has barely done anything else. Well, let me tell you, after this movie, she’s going to be getting a lot of more opportunities undoubtedly.
The movie’s events involve a group of 5 teenage orphans who live under the strict rules of their remaining family, including their uncle and grandmother. The troubling this is, they’re all being shipped out slowly but surely into arranged marriages, which they rebel against with all the strength they have at such a young age.
Tentatively, I would label this a coming-of-age of sorts, but from the off, you can see that this is a different kind coming-of-age movie. Perhaps it’s the snappy, foul language-filled dialogue, or the extremely mature subject matter, but it creates a uniqueness and poignancy that is unmatched in other coming of age dramas. At it’s heart though, this movie is like any other coming of age drama – rebellion is at the forefront and you want these girls to free themselves no matter what.
Immediately, you are bombarded with hard-hitting issues: child abuse, archaic morals and gender codes, arranged marriage… it’s not a light movie – the darkness is evident and plain to see. There is (much needed) lightness throughout though via the theme of a still child-like sisterhood, and the protagonists keeping their witty sense of humour through the hardships helps to keep the audience from feeling glum the whole way through. This is a movie of many shades, and it is masterfully done.
Although I’m not sure how realistic this is in its depictions of life in Turkey for young girls, but I’d assume that some of it is true. And it’s extremely eye-opening. It really makes you question the world, and how lucky you can be in comparison.
All this nuance, plus top notch cinematography and a pretty soundtrack on top of it makes for a gorgeous movie. The young actress who plays Lale (Güneş Şensoy) is wonderful, as are the other girls. But Şensoy is particularly outstanding, and was only 13 years old at the time of filming. It’s hard to believe that this was her first role in any TV show or film. She has a long career ahead of her, that’s for sure.
Once again, I was flabbergasted by the excellency of the curation on MUBI, and this is one that I will remember for years to come.
Mustang is available to stream on MUBI in the UK.
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